Spiritual Division: Catholics brace to learn where they will take their faith

The Rev. Gerald Canavan of St. Rose of Lima Church confirmed the Eddystone church, once targeted for closing, will be opening its doors to accommodate a growing flock. (Photo courtesy of stroseoflimaparish.net)

After several months under the microscope of the Archdiocesan Strategic Planning Committee, at least one Delaware County church, St. Margaret Mary Alocoque in Tinicum, and likely one or two others, will be shutting their doors July 1.

“We’ve been hearing for months that it’s a done deal,” said Elizabeth DeMarcantonio, 76, a lifelong resident of Tinicum and member of St. Margaret Mary’s. “Today our pastor met with the (archbishop) and was told our church is closing.”

“We were praying it wasn’t going to happen and now it looks like it will... personally, I’d rather go down fighting.”

Attempts to reach the Rev. Anthony Orth were unsuccessful Friday but in the most recent St. Margaret Mary church bulletin he wrote: “So by now we should know who we are going to merge with on July 1st, and I should know where I am going.”

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The 93-year-old Tinicum church was one of 13 in the county under review as part of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s Parish Pastoral Planning Initiative.

“Announcements will be made at all Masses on Saturday evening as well as Sunday,” archdiocesan spokesman Kenneth Gavin said via email Thursday. “All registered parishioners will also receive a letter in the mail with information regarding parish mergers.”

Parishioners should also learn whether their priest is staying put, retiring or being reassigned.

In addition to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the following Delaware County churches were studied for future sustainability: Holy Spirit in Sharon Hill, Sacred Heart in Clifton Heights, St. Gabriel in Norwood, St. Madeline in Ridley Park, St. George in Glenolden, St. Rose of Lima in Eddystone, St. Eugene in Upper Darby, St. Joseph in Collingdale, and Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Peace, Our Lady of Perpetual Help and Notre Dame de Lourdes, all in Ridley Township.

Thirty parishes in the archdiocese have been shuttered since the parish pastoral planning initiative began under Cardinal Justin Rigali in 2010. Last June, his successor, Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, approved the closing of St. Louis Church in Yeadon, St. Alice Church in Upper Darby, St. Cyril of Alexandria Church in East Lansdowne, Holy Saviour Church in Lower Chichester and Immaculate Conception Church in Marcus Hook.

“The process will continue until all parishes in the five-county Archdiocese have participated,” Gavin said. “The process is about creating viability and sustainability throughout the entire local church.”

The Rev. Gerald Canavan of St. Rose of Lima Church said his Chester Pike church, once targeted for closing, will remain open for business.

“Our parish is not closing and I am going to stay,” the 72-year-old pastor said Friday night. “Our name may have been on the chopping block in the early stages but once it got to a higher level that idea was thrown out... I had to speak up for my parish. I wouldn’t say fight but speak up for it. This place and all these people are pretty easy to defend.”

To accommodate a growing flock, the balcony at St. Rose of Lima has been extended three times and two rows of chairs have been added on each side of the pews. “We used to seat 228, now we are closer to 650,” Canavan said.

Rumors about this year’s closings and mergers were flying around Friday but none of them could be confirmed.

Two Delaware County priests said they were told Notre Dame de Lourdes in Ridley Township was closing but the parish’s outgoing pastor, the Rev. Karl Zeuner, was unavailable Friday.

In announcing his retirement May 1, Zeuner wrote: “... although we know that Notre Dame de Lourdes Parish and School will continue, we do not know if Our Lady of Peace will be joined to us until May 30.”

The Rev. Robert Feeney, pastor of Our Lady of Peace, was reportedly meeting with archdiocese officials downtown on Friday and could not be reached for comment.

Though he had received no official word, Monsignor John Savinski of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church said he was “99 percent sure” his parish would remain in tact.

“We are all in the same boat,” he said. “There’s always that 1 percent chance but all I can say is I haven’t heard anything yet and, by now, I’m pretty sure I would have heard something.”

The Rev. Thomas Sodano of St. Joseph Church in Collingdale was feeling similarly optimistic.

“I would think they would have talked to us by now if they were going to relocate us,” he said.

Sodano said several factors are used to determine a parish’s viability.

“It’s not just about money,” he said. “St. Louis closed last year with a million in the bank. It’s about a lot of things, your location, the buildings and their condition, demographics, parking, and whether people will actually go in that direction (to another church).

“The (archdiocese) wants to make the best decision for everyone... It’s not always as easy as saying, ‘If these three parishes close, the people in this town will go to this (church).’ It doesn’t always work that way. The current flows a certain way and you have to figure that out because the people are going to vote with their feet and go where they want to go.”

Canavan said closing a parish is a painful experience for all involved.

“It is a tough thing to have your church building close,” he said. “It is the place where we bury our dead, baptize our children, get married and go to confession to have our kids absolved. It’s an emotional and very difficult thing to have to go through.”

DeMarcantonio said she and many other parishioners at St. Margaret Mary’s are not interested in leaving town for worship.

“I teach CCD there, my children and grandchildren made all their sacraments there, I buried my husband and my son there,” she said. “Some people are so disgusted, they have said they just won’t go to church anymore. With everything the Catholic Church has been through, we were loyal to them but now where is the loyalty to us?

“We’re like displaced people. Wherever we go, we are going to be outsiders.”

About the Author

Tim Logue is a general assignment reporter for the Daily Times. Reach the author at tlogue@delcotimes.com
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